Mensagem de Dalai Lama - com amor

Com Amor

Se você quer transformar o mundo, experimente primeiro promover o seu aperfeiçoamento pessoal e realizar inovações no seu próprio interior. Estas atitudes se refletirão em mudanças positivas no seu ambiente familiar. Deste ponto em diante, as mudanças se expandirão em proporções cada vez maiores. Tudo o que fazemos produz efeito, causa algum impacto.

Se existe amor, há também esperança de existirem verdadeiras famílias, verdadeira fraternidade, verdadeira igualdade e verdadeira paz. Se não há mais amor dentro de você, se você continua a ver os outros como inimigos, não importa o conhecimento ou o nível de instrução que você tenha, não importa o progresso material que alcance, só haverá sofrimento e confusão no cômputo final. O homem vai continuar enganando e subjugando outros homens, mas insultar ou maltratar os outros é algo sem propósito. O fundamento de toda prática espiritual é o amor. Que você o pratique bem é meu único pedido.

Determinação, coragem e autoconfiança são fatores decisivos para o sucesso. Não importa quais sejam os obstáculos e as dificuldades. Se estamos possuídos de uma inabalável determinação, conseguiremos superá-los. Independentemente das circunstâncias, devemos ser sempre humildes, recatados e despidos de orgulho.

Seria muito mais produtivo se as pessoas procurassem compreender seus pretensos inimigos. Aprender a perdoar é muito mais proveitoso do que simplesmente tomar de uma pedra e arremessá-la contra o objeto de sua ira. Quanto maior a provocação, maior a vantagem do perdão. É quando padecemos os piores infortúnios que surgem as grandes oportunidades de se fazer o bem a si e aos outros.

A agressão é uma tendência que faz parte do nosso íntimo. Por isso, temos de lutar contra nós mesmos. Homens criados em ambientes rigorosamente não-violentos acabaram se transformando nos mais horríveis carniceiros. O que prova que a semente da mais insana agressividade mora nas profundezas de cada um de nós. Mas nossa verdadeira natureza é de modo geral pacífica. Todos nós conhecemos as agitações da alma humana, que está sujeita a imprevistos assustadores. Mas essa não é a sua força dominante. É possível e é necessário dominar a agressividade.

O que mais nos incomoda é ver nossos sonhos frustrados. Mas permanecer no desânimo não ajuda em nada para a concretização desses sonhos. Se ficamos assim, nem vamos em busca dos nossos sonhos, nem recuperamos o bom humos! Este estado de confusão, propício ao crescimento da ira, é muito perigoso. Temos de nos esforçar e não permitir que a nossa serenidade seja perturbada. Quer estejamos vivenciando um grande sofrimento, ou já o tenhamos experimentado, não há razão para alimentarmos o sentimento de infelicidade.

A felicidade é um estado de espírito. Se a sua mente ainda estiver num estado de confusão e agitação, os bens materiais não lhe vão proporcionar felicidade. Felicidade significa paz de espírito.

É através da arte de escutar que seu espírito se enche de fé e devoção e que você se torna capaz de cultivar a alegria interior e o equilíbrio da mente. A arte de escutar lhe permite alcançar sabedoria, superando toda ignorância. Então, é vantajoso dedicar-se a ela, mesmo que isto lhe custe a vida. A arte de escutar é como uma luz que dissipa a escuridão da ignorância. Se você é capaz de manter sua mente constantemente rica através da arte de escutar, não tem o que temer. Este tipo de riqueza jamais lhe será tomado. Essa é a maior das riquezas.

Quando estiver praticando a caridade, faça-o com alegria e com um semblante radiante. Devemos praticar a caridade com um sorriso no rosto e otimismo no coração.

O aprimoramento da paciência requer a presença de alguém que deliberadamente nos faça mal. Esse tipo de pessoa nos dá a chance de praticarmos a tolerância. A nossa força interior é posta à prova com mais intensidade do que aquela de que o nosso guia espiritual seria capaz. Em essência, o exercício da paciência nos protege da perda da confiança.

Aromaterapia - Clear Thinking + Good mood

To aid in clear thinking try blending 3 ounces of sweet almond or jojoba oilwith 3 drops of lavender, 2 drops of lemon, 2 drops of peppermint and 2drops of spearmint. Gently massage temples in times of confusion or stress.

To brighten your mood, mix 2 drops of Bergamot, 2 drops of Geranium and 2drops of Lavender. Use with any Aroma Lamp.

Law of Attraction Most Frequently asked Questions

Listen as Bob Doyle, Teacher from The Secret,

answers the MOST FREQUENTLY asked

LAW OF ATTRACTION QUESTIONS



**************************************************************

Here is the Transcript to the Above Recording







Topics Covered:



Gratitude Lists – What Are They And How Do I Use It?

EFT and Using Negative Phrases – How can that work?

Negative People – Can They Affect your Ability to Attract?

Relationships – When Two Disagree on the Law of Attraction

Attracting Specific People

The Lottery – How To Manifest a Win

The Flightwaves Meditations – How to Use Them

How Many Things To Focus on During Meditation

Why do bad things happen?

Inspired Action And Why You'll Need to Take It

"It's not working…" – I've been doing this x months, but nothing's changed, and in fact has gotten worse!





Hello and welcome to what I'm calling Coaching FAQ #1. While this very similar to the Coaching Seminars in the members area, they are not based on specific questions as much as they are a type of question I tend to get all the time.



The topics I cover are listed on the page you downloaded this audio from and these truly questions I get all the time, so I'll be you've had at least one of the questions in the past, or have them now.



My hope is that I can concisely as possible, give you the answers you're looking for without turning this into a 90 minute audio. Nearly all of these questions could be the topics of their own seminar or even teleseminar, but I hope to give you the basic information you need to feel like you have a better understanding of the topic.



So let's go.



When I'm interviewed, and in the Wealth Beyond Reason book and lectures I talk a lot about gratitude, because most simply, a grateful attitude with attract more things for you to be grateful for. It's almost too easy.



I also talk about Gratitude Lists – a little in our books, and a lot when I work with Carol Look, because she really understands the importance of gratitude and it's significant impact on you vibration at many levels.



A gratitude list is simply that. A list that you create on a regular basis of ALL the things you are grateful for in your life. Not just the big things, but all the little things as well, because when you can really feel the gratitude for something we take for granted like having dinner on the table every night, then that feelings still has a powerful impact on your "I'm grateful vibration".



The idea is to go beyond all the things that you might immediately think of, though you should write all those down too, and to really recognize how wonderful you do have it, even if you're dealing with challenges that seem overwhelming.



Again, you should do this on a regular basis – even daily. We tell you to do this because it just absolutely can change your life so quickly – something this simple as recognizing and acknowledging and FEELING the nearly countless blessings you have in your life. It not only gives you great perspective, but it fine-tunes your vibration into an abundance

magnet more quickly than just about any other technique – because there's not generally a great deal of resistance around gratitude.



Next. A very common question to those who are new to EFT, the Emotional Freedom Techniques, involves the use of negatively worded setup phrases. The thinking is that if we keep confirming those negative statements, aren't we just attracting more of it? The

answer is NO – because you're not DWELLING in the negative feelings. You're simply tuning into them so that the actual EFT tapping process works on specifically the feeling you want to neutralize.



If those feelings are there, then pushing them down or trying to justify them will NOT serve you. You can speak positively and do all the other happy smiley law of attraction things, but if you harbor resistance, in the form of these limiting beliefs or negative thoughts, you will not be able to fully align with the life you're most likely trying to attract.



By tuning into these emotions very specifically, we then have direct access to them via EFT – but if we try to deny those emotions, and don't really allow ourselves to tune into them, the process is only working on the level of emotion that you DID conjure up, and your results will be limited.



By the same token, the use of positive phrases works because if you don't BELIEVE the positive phrases you're saying, the resistance will surface and you'll be tuned into it. So it doesn't really matter if the phrases are negative or positive. What matters is your emotional reaction whatever phrases you're using, and it's ability to really let you tune in

on the Energy system that you want balanced out.



There's no one right way to do this, and EFT practioners around the world approach the technique differently, but what's going on is the same. They're helping people – through whatever verbal method – tune into an emotion, and then they're doing the actual physical procedure. Obviously that may vary in places, but overall this hopefully addresses the whole negative statement issue and why EFT practitioners tend to do things

so differently. The end result is what's most important.



Another one:

Can negative people affect your ability to attract what you want?

The answer is really very simple. They can, but only to the extent that you allow them to. That is, if you're emotions are affected negatively by other people, and you allow that negative feeling to perpetuate, then you must realize that you will attract accordingly.



That's not to say that it's realistic to expect that NO ONE should ever occur as negative to you, but what matters in terms of YOUR ability to attract, is what's going on with YOUR vibration, which doesn't have to be affected by other people's words, opinions, or attitudes, though it's totally understanding that for most people, we DO let those things at

least have some level of impact.



However, we have a tool with EFT that allows us to quickly manage those negative feelings as they come up. What will occur is that your vibration will be so OUT of alignment with those negative people that they will show up less and less in your life.



This leads directly into another common question about relationships.



If one person embraces these principles, and another – perhaps a spouse – doesn't, then it is not the job of either one of them to try to "convert" the other. Of course, that's what typically happens.



And in my experience, because of what I do, I'm generally hearing from the spouse that has really woken up to him or herself, has a clear vision for themselves which may be radically different than how they are now – and has totally embraced the principles of the Law of Attraction – but their spouse thinks it's nonsense. What do you do?



Well, I address this in many other places in the Wealth Beyond Reason program that I don't want to get too detailed now. But basically, you have to accept that a) you attracted that person into your life appropriately at the time that you did and b) that we cannot make a person do something or believe something they don't want to believe.



At this point, you have a choice to make – but the most important thing that you should not be attached to any specific outcome which involves CHANGING the other person. There's so much wrong with this at the level of resistance that I could talk a long time about that.



Your job, if you want to call it that, is to make the decision who's life you're ultimately going to live. Yours, or someone else's version of yours? If you decide to live for YOU, you can expect your situation to change – but ASSUMING how it's going to change is in no way productive. The idea is to fully allow whatever happens to unfold. Do you best not to label events as good or bad.



If you have a vision for yourself which involves passion, happiness, love, family, a sense of purpose and so on, and you work through the areas of resistance you may have in this area, the Universe will deliver that in the most efficient ways possible. Sometimes that means radical changes in the people who you surround yourself with. Other times, however, it can result in a seemingly miraculous shift in the other person. And what's most significant about this is that way more than that person changing, YOU changed. At an energetic level, what you're allowing another person to be or do has expanded, and thus you make it possible for people around you to actually be different to you. But's it's YOU who did the significant changing, and I think that's an important distinction to understand because it really has far-reaching implications, way beyond that of simply

relationships, but to how perceive literally everything. It all originates inside of US.





But speaking of relationships, I'm constantly hearing stories of people who are trying attract specific people into their lives. And while at first there doesn't appear to be much wrong with that, it's amazing how many of these stories involve people who are married to someone else, or who are showing no interest in the person trying to do the attracting.





As succinctly as possible, I'll say this:



It is absolutely not appropriate, nor will it work, to try to "realign" another person's vibration. If the relationship that you want is not what they want then you are not in vibrational resonance.





Your job is to be clear on the FEELING that you believe being with this particular person is going to give you, and then be open to attracting ANYONE that will be in alignment with that. You don't serve yourself by being attached to this one person, as if nobody else could provide you the fulfillment that you believe this person can. The fact is, they may

be currently with someone else, for whatever reasons. It is now time for you to allow infinite possibility, without being attached.





EFT can help you let go of some of those attached feelings. I might suggest setup phrases like:



"Even though it HAS to be this person or I won't be happy...."

"Even though I'm not good enough, and that's why they're with someone else..."

"Even though I'm hurt that they are not with me..."





These types of phrases will help you to "detach" from your happiness being dependant on attracting a particular person, and will allow you to most effectively attract someone who is truly in vibrational alignment with the type of relationship you really want.





So now, the Lottery.





Can I use the Law of Attraction to win the lottery? How come I can win $5, but not the megamillions? Statements like, "I know that when I win the lottery I'll be able to do all the things I want to do, give to charity, etc."





But almost ALWAYS there comes with these questions such attachment to it HAVING to be the Lottery that provides the resources they need. They absolutely believe that one big windfall like that is THE way for them to realize their dreams, and they're just not getting that it's not going to work that way because the resistance they have to allowing these resources to come is so strong, they're missing limitless opportunities to live their

dreams than spending dollar after dollar on lottery tickets in a game where the odds are so heavily stacked against them – and they KNOW and BELIEVE this – and because of that, AND their attachment to it having to be the lottery, they are so OUT of alignment with actually winning that they can't possibly attract it.



Further, we all know from the countless stories you hear that if a person is truly out of alignment with that kind of wealth, it doesn't mean they're out of alignment with winning. But who they are is the same…they're vibration may have a temporary shift, but if their core beliefs don't change about money which may have put them in a desperate situation prior to winning the lottery, then that money will be gone in no time. They're literally repelling it at a vibrational level.



If you're going to play the lottery my advice is to do it in conjunction with more meaningful displays of inspired action. It's not a person's purpose or passion to play the lottery. Following your passions and taking inspired actions around those are a much more efficient and FUN path to your ideal life. Again, I want to stress taking inspired action, as I'm going to be addressing that a couple more times in this recording.



Let the lottery be one of unlimited paths through which you'll allow the resources you need to flow to you, and you stand a much better chance of attracting a winning ticket because resistance is so much lower.



Now just a few quick things about the Flightwaves meditations.



These were actually created in 1998 and sold on their own. The purpose was, and still is, to provide an audio tool that allows people to slip into the meditative state with little or no effort, and I believe these recordings do that very well. But what's the best way to use them?



Well, there's really no rules. You'll find a PDF document called the "Reality Creation Workbook" along with the audio files. This will guide you through ONE method of using these meditations, though most people find our Experiential Meditation somewhat more powerful as a visualization-based meditation.



Still, since the Fligihtwaves audio has no speaking or subliminal message of any kind on it, you can use the recording however you'd like. Personally, I love the Thelta/Delta recording to lay down with in the afternoon for a 30 minute recharge. But you can use them how you'd like. No rules.



So speaking of the Experiential Meditation, a question I get a lot is about how many things you should focus on or visualize while listening. Again, there is no rule to this.





Remember, more than what you're visualizing, it's important that you're generating the emotions that you believe you're going to have when you have whatever you're visualizing. So you can visualize one thing, or a whole collection of things. For example, when I was visualizing my dream home, I used many elements to create the specific vibration

associated with what it would feel like to move into my dream home. In my example, I used the house on the lake that I described in my Wealth Beyond Reason book. But I learned early on that that house, more than being "mine", was the symbol I needed to generate the feelings that I thought that house would give me. In other words, I was no

longer attached to THAT HOUSE (which as it turns out, had problems we probably did not want to inherit), but ANY house that would give me the sense of freedom, joy, and satisfaction that my visualized house was bringing.



When you do that you allow "this or something better", which nearly always turns out better. In my case, with the house, the house we ended up in, exceeds my expectations of that lake house is countless ways. But that lake house kept me focused on my goal of attracting A dream home. It served it's purpose well. And if you can learn to detach from

the specifics, you'll attract what you want most, much more quickly.



Now that the Law of Attraction is in front of many more people than ever thanks in no small part to the movie "The Secret", the more obvious questions and objections are surfacing, and of course one of the main things thrown out are questions about why bad things happen to good people – how babies attract illness, how mass murder victims or

terror victims attracted those events and so on. And those are totally fair questions, but really GETTING this requires a real knowledge of the Law of Attraction and how it works, and not just the basic "Like attract Like" and "What you focus on Expands" aspects of the Law of Attraction CAN occur, but is not inherently how it works for most people.



The Law of Attraction is not inherently about attracting on purpose. Most people are definitely attracting by default at a totally unconscious level.



We don't just attract things that we want. We attract things that we are in ALIGNMENT with at a vibrational level. We don't always get in alignment with things on purpose. If we don't know about the Law of Attraction and that we can have a level of conscious control over what we're vibrating, we're most likely going to align with the predominant

vibration around us.



This is how we pick up limiting beliefs in the first place. We learn them from those around us. We just assume they are true and they become a part of our vibration and we attract accordingly.



If a person lives in a society where "bad things happen" all the time, they are very likely to believe that "bad things happen all the time", and that belief becomes a part of their vibration, and thus they attract accordingly. So entire societies can become in alignment with certain things happening because no one knows (or at least not enough people to make a significant difference) that things can be any other way.



Children will be in alignment with the vibrations of their parents most of the time. If the parents have a great deal of resistance in certain areas, that resistance is very likely going to become a part of that child's experience as well. Did the child ASK for this? No. Did then INTENTIONALLY attract it? No. But the attraction process IS still going on. It's ALWAYS going on.



The Law of Attraction allows anyone to change ANY situation, however there is often so much resistance going on, that it would SEEM to be an impossible feat. But it's not. It's just that the Universe responds to a person's predominant vibration, and short bursts of positive thinking cannot sustain a vibration that will attract significant change.



What needs to occur is that the world needs to get educated on the Law of Attraction. What it is, and what it's not. They need to understand that it's not some "feel good /personal development" theory, but a powerful physical law that literally holds our experience of the world together. When they can get past the hyperbole of the Law of Attraction and really understand it, then significant changes can occur on the planet.



Right now though, it's most important that we as individuals start to learn to shape our OWN experience of reality - because until we do that, we're not going to have the same ability to make a profound impact on the rest of the world - which, by the way is your OWN interpretation of what's really going on out there - and in reality is a grand illusion based on how you're interpreting the Energy around you, filtered through your own belief system.



When it comes down to it, it's truly not our place to even try to interpret why things happen to other people, as it only brings us into alignment with those things we're trying to figure out - and while that doesn't mean that you'll then experience those things yourself, you're going to be in alignment with continually hearing about those things -

and you'll be vibrationally stuck trying to figure out why other people are attracting the way they are. Your experience of the world will be that bad things are constantly happening. This is a choice you make when you choose to put your attention on it.



I'm not saying that one should always look the other way. Sometimes when we hear about something that we perceive as "bad", we experience an inspired call to action. The news awakens something within us that is in alignment with our sense of purpose and we know that we can make a difference. This is COMPLETELY different than emotionally

wallowing in the bad news, wondering WHY WHY WHY, and taking no action that benefits anyone at all.



Each one of us is an interpretation machine. We are bundles of Energy in human form, interpreting the rest of the Energy in the Universe, filtering information through our belief systems, and shaping our experience of reality. But it's OUR reality. The fact is, we don't really know what's going on "out there". But we are creating our own truth about what's going on. If we aren't careful, we can shape a truth that is unsatisfying, full of

frear, worry, and doubt, and truly miss the incredible experience we're here to have.



The Wealth Beyond Reason program is all about waking people up to these facts. The movie "The Secret" has the same goal; to show people that if you're in a place in your life that you don't like, you can do something about it. It's not about blaming anyone by saying "Well, YOU attracted it." It's about attempting to communicate in a loving way

that there are forces at work that allow things to become part of your experience, and if you're unaware of them, things seem out of control. But a small shift in awareness can begin to shift everything.



But you have to start with yourself.



I'll talk very briefly here about Inspired Action simply because I already have a whole follow-up seminar on it posted in the members area, but in case you're listening to this and don't have access to that seminar for whatever reason, I just want to clarify a misconception that some people have about what they THINK Law of Attractions teachers are saying.



What they're HEARING is that all you need to do is think positive happy thoughts and visualize, and everything you want will just appear. They hear us say that It's not their job to "figure out the HOW" of all of this, and to allow it to happen – and they perceive that to mean that we're saying you should just sit around doing nothing and trusting that

things are on the way.



That's not what we're saying. Although the Law of Attraction CAN bring things to people in seemingly magical ways if they have particularly low resistance in a certain area, in most cases a person will work in CONCERT with the Universe by taking Inspired Action. This is action that is nearly always born out of some intuitive flash, or unusual occurrences or meetings. Ideas out of nowhere. These are all the Universe

responding to your vibrational alignment with something different, and it is providing to you the most efficient means of you to bring that vision into your experience of reality…and the means that it's providing ARE those ideas, on which your job is then to take ACTION. Whether or not the action or idea makes any logical sense to you in terms of what your final vision is, is completely unimportant. You can only know what you

know, and make judgments from that. The Universe knows everything else. It's SO much easier to simply trust what you're given and take that inspired action. It's almost always going to feel fun, allow you to experience a sense of purpose, and not feel like work.



So it's not about doing nothing. In most cases you'll be taking massive action, truly feeling alive, and speeding toward the realization of your ever-evolving vision as you enjoy the process of getting there as much as you'll enjoy the rewards of your arrival.



So finally, this. I can honestly say that I rarely ever get e-mail like this, but every 6 months or so someone will tell me (normally out of the blue, meaning this is probably the first time that I've heard from them), that they've been a member of the program for however long, and things just aren't changing, or they're getting worse, or something along those lines.

Once you truly understand the Law of Attraction, you can see what's going on with people like this. First, they either DON'T fully get the Law of Attraction, and thus are going through the program with more of a "faith in the unknown" feeling about it, thus leaving room for very little real shift in their vibration, and actually putting a heck of a force field of resistance up, or the DO believe and at least intellectually understand the Law of Attraction, but seem to also have a belief that it's somehow bypassing them, or doesn't work with them correctly.



What we ALL have to accept is that we ARE attracting our experience, and we're not always going to understand it. But what every student of this program should know if they've gone through the lectures, is that if we're having an unenjoyable experience of life, there is simply more resistance to deal with. And I'll have people tell me they're doing EFT and not getting results, and I can almost guarantee that 100% of the time,

they're either tapping on the wrong issues, or not allowing themselves to fully tune into the emotion that counts with regards to what's keeping them stuck.



I've seen far too many seemingly impossible things happen with EFT to buy into anyone's story that it can't work for them, or their issue. I know a lot of people go through the motions of EFT and never really allow themselves to tune into what they're working on, which of COURSE will have a very limited result. Then they'll blame the process for not working, but it's simply sometimes an issue of just not having the experience with the process to know that you're probably not tapping on the right stuff,

or you're tapping AROUND an issue which might be to charged for you to look at.



Also, there are always going to be people who, even though they've spent 30-40 years gathering up extremely powerful resistance over the years, and forming extremely rigid beliefs, they expect because they join a "program" for all this to go away and things to change in a short time frame, short by THEIR definition by the way.



Listen, I've heard from many people who get nearly instant results with the Law of Attraction just because some small piece of information from our program turned on a crucial light for them and even with learning about EFT allowed them to lower some crucial area of resistance.



For others thought, resistance is going to be much more complex, and more persistence will be necessary. But giving up because it's not happening fast enough does not serve you. Resistance and getting rid of as much of it as possible is the key. Once you understand the basic truths of the Law of Attraction, it's all about the ongoing work with resistance.



But if a person is attached to a specific result in an area where they have massive amounts of resistance, and they keep looking at what's "not happening yet" and allowing that feeling to grow in them, of COURSE They'll seem stuck and like nothing's happening, but it's because they insist on looking at the same things and feeling the same way about them over and over again. They can go through all the exercises, they can

meditation, they can even go through the motions of countless hours of EFT, but if they keep floating their attention to what's missing in their lives, then nothing can change.



This is why part of our refund policy is that you absolutely MUST promise up front to ask for help if some part of the program is slowing you down, or has you confused in any way. Our commitment to our students is MUCH more serious than a tire-kicker relationship where people come in and don't do the work, but just want to "try it out". That's why we tell the tire-kickers right up front, don't join. We're about results and

accountability.



No one can ever again convince me that the Law of Attraction "isn't working" for them. It's always working WITH them…it's always working with you…and you have an amazing amount of control over how you can interact with it and experience your life.

Aromaterapia - Fatigue

Adrenal Support from Nature - Aromatherapy Essential Oil Blends for Fighting
Fatigue

Feeling fatigued a little too often? Morning cappuccino no longer doing its
job? Getting that feeling that you've been worn thin by your busy schedule,
and you're just not bouncing back? These can be signs of over-worked adrenal
glands – and can be symptoms of a syndrome known as "Adrenal Fatigue".
Thankfully, a few commonly-available essential oils can offer support in
regenerating worn-out adrenal glands.


Adrenal Supporting Essential Oils

Several easy-to-find essential oils are commonly used in aromatherapy to
support the adrenals glands. Some are used purely for adrenal gland
restoration, while others are used to provide a healthy lift when needed,
and may be of assistance when reducing caffeine intake. These oils are not
to be taken internally, but are best diluted in a carrier oil and applied to
the skin.

Spruce and Black Spruce Needle Oils - Spruce is thought to restore depleted
adrenal glands, and is used regularly by aromatherapists in blends applied
directly over the adrenal area, or in an all-over body lotion.

Pine Needle Oil – Pine essential oil is noted to be one of the "most
effective oils for fatigue and nervous debility". Pine can be blended with
Spruce for a synergistic revitalizing effect.

Atlas Cedar Oil – Moroccan Cedar is thought to gently and persistently
stimulate the metabolism. Rather than regenerating, as do the Spruce and
Pine oils, Cedar will provide a smooth, deep, and long lasting stimulation
without the side effects of coffee and black tea.

Peppermint Oil – Peppermint has a broad range of healthful properties, and
is thought of as an uplifting aroma. Peppermint, like Cedar, can be used for
gentle stimulation and alertness.

Citrus Oils – Essential oils pressed from the rinds of citrus fruit like
sweet orange, bitter orange (bergamot), lemon and lime are also uplifting
and brightening, yet have a relaxing quality as well. They are useful
additions to fatigue-busting blends, as the added calming, but not sedating,
quality can lower stress levels, which are generally the cause of adrenal
fatigue in the first place.

Karma ou Dharma

Karma ou Dharma?

Karma e dharma são dois conceitos espirituais relacionados entre si. Karma em sânscrito quer dizer “kri”, de criar, e dharma também. Porém, o primeiro está relacionado ao passado, ao que plantamos e colhemos, enquanto o dharma é uma modificação do karma pelo desenvolvimento das nossas qualidades e dos nossos dons.

É certo que enquanto não nos libertarmos do nosso passado negativo teremos dificuldade de acionarmos o dharma, mas nossa passagem pela terra serve para evoluir o nosso espírito. Na chegada da Nova Era, a Era de Aquário, não podemos mais ficar presos às limitações do nosso passado por tempo indeterminado. Precisamos ativar em nosso espírito os karmas do passado para nos libertar dele e, assim, entrarmos em contato com nosso dharma.

Muitas pessoas erroneamente tentam pular etapas querendo entrar no dharma antes de entenderem profundamente o que ficou registrado em seu espírito de maneira negativa e que necessita ser compreendido e transmutado.

Karma: o caminho do homem

Por meio da astrologia kármica, o ser humano é capaz de responder a algumas questões como, por exemplo: “Qual a sua missão?”, Quais as lições a serem aprendidas?” e, desta forma, consegue entender quais são os karmas negativos do passado e como se dão os relacionamentos kármicos. Na astrologia, quem indica o caminho é o grande cobrador do karma: o planeta Saturno.

Dharma: os dons adquiridos em outras vidas
A astrologia dhármica ajuda a transformar o karma, provocando mudanças de atitudes, do negativo para o positivo e mostrando o relacionamento positivo entre as pessoas próximas, por meio das nossas qualidades.
Os mapas dhármicos indicam como podemos ajudar uns aos outros, através do desenvolvimento dos dons adquiridos, saindo do karma e acionado o dharma.
O dharma é um processo e os planetas que nos auxiliam nessa transformação são Júpiter, Urano, Netuno, Plutão.

Do karma para o dharma

Como foi dito anteriormente, há registros de karma negativo em nosso espírito e que precisam ser transmutados como, por exemplo, bloqueios, medos, inseguranças, sensação de não merecimento, fuga da responsabilidade, inveja, possessividade. Mas como alcançar o dom da palavra, a capacidade de influenciar pessoas, o poder mental, a sensibilidade, a intuição, a sensação de alegria e a felicidade? Esses são alguns exemplos de dharma, que só serão atingidos se conseguirmos nos livrar do kharma.

Como eliminar o karma negativo

- Retornar ao passado e libertar mágoas e tristezas;
- Reviver cenas negativas e transformá-las em positivas;
- Desenvolver a auto-estima;
- Perdoar-se por erros cometidos;
- Perdoar o semelhante.

Como despertar para o dharma
- Desenvolver: a serenidade, a tolerância, a compaixão e a amizade por todos;
- Despertar para a pureza de intenções;
- Ter força para superar situações difíceis;
- Transmitir conhecimento;
- Ensinar.

Viva o presente

Para atingirmos o dharma precisamos nos tornar conscientes de que não existe tempo/espaço, exceto aquele que somos capazes de usar. Perguntas e problemas cujas soluções o indivíduo procura no futuro tendem a impeli-lo a uma concepção de tempo do qual ainda não pode fazer uso, porque quanto mais pensa no futuro mais se distancia do agora. O passado já passou e o futuro ainda não existe, portanto, podemos programar através da nossa mente a melhora do nosso futuro.

Temos de aprender a viver um dia de cada vez, aprender a viver o momento atual e não nos preocuparmos em como vai ser à tarde ou à noite. Se ainda estamos presenciando a manhã, devemos viver esse tempo. A ansiedade só atrapalha.

Pense no mundo como um gigantesco oceano no qual cada pessoa é apenas uma gotinha de água. Perceba o quanto somos minúsculos e pequenos diante desse oceano. A gotinha se mistura no oceano e é isso que devemos fazer: nos entregar à vida sem pensar no amanhã de maneira negativa. Somos capazes de programar a nossa mente para termos um futuro melhor.

Mapa Dhármico

O Mapa Dhármico ajuda você a despertar para as conquistas positivas de sua alma, acionado seus dons e iluminando seu espírito. Só assim você estará pronto para realizar sua missão espiritual na Terra.

Os planetas simbolizam as energias, os signos que eles se encontram colorem essas energias como filtro. Conhecendo o tipo de energia que um planeta emite, o signo no qual se encontra transformará sutilmente essas energias.

Nós e nossos companheiros de viagem pela vida nascemos com o Sol em signos diferentes que nos permitem viver a experiência desse signo nesta vida de maneiras ímpares. A fim de melhorar a nossa essência, devemos aprender como usar, da melhor maneira possível, nosso Sol, com toda a intensidade do signo solar.

Compreender como usar seu Sol é um processo que requer esforço consciente. É por isso que o karma continua se repetindo toda vez que um indivíduo deixa a consciência da sua presença solar diminuir. Cada momento que ele fica mais em contato com o poder de ser que o seu Sol lhe proporciona a repetição do karma passado se dissipa mais e mais, pois seu foco de energia fica cada vez mais perto da sua realidade.

Discovering the Higher Purpose of Relationship..Orin DaBen

Discovering the Higher Purpose
of a Relationship
Meditation by Orin and DaBen

I relax and take a deep breath in,
letting relaxation
spread throughout my body.

I imagine sitting or lying in the sun.
Its rays of light
warm me to the core of my being.
Wonderful, nurturing light
moves through my body.

I imagine that I am bathing
in solar light,
the light of the soul of the sun,
the light of higher purpose.
All the cells being born
in my body right now
have a higher vibration
as I imagine this.

I call back to myself
any energy I have scattered
in the universe.
I feel centered and balanced.

From this place of inner peace
I ask my soul to link with me.
My soul joins its light with mine.
I am surrounded
by the loving presence of my Soul.

I think of a relationship in my life.
I let someone come into my mind.
I affirm that there is a
higher purpose to our relationship.

I am ready to know more
about our higher purpose
in being together.
Knowing more of our higher purpose
deepens and enriches our relationship.

I imagine that the other person
is standing in front of me.
I sense my soul, then
I sense the soul of my friend.

I now ask that more about
the higher purpose of our
relationship be revealed.

I ask,
"What have we come together to learn?

What are we here to create together?

What are we here to heal in each other?

What is this relationship teaching us?

What qualities am I and the other person
developing by being in this relationship?

How is this relationship assisting us
in growing stronger, more whole and complete within?

What are our soul's purposes for being together?"

I take time after each question
to get quiet and listen within for answers.

As I know the higher purpose of
our relationship,
I can cooperate fully with my soul
to manifest this higher purpose.

I recognize the light in this person.
I see this person's goodness.
I honor this person's soul.
I offer love and compassion,
to this person.

I increase the light in each of us
through my positive thoughts.
I release criticism
and accept this person as he/she is.

I now take time
to find out more
about the higher purpose
of my relationship with
one or more of the following people:

An important loved one;
a child,
a parent,
a grandparent,
an aunt and/or uncle,
a brother and/or sister,
a good friend,
a colleague,
an employee, or an employer.

I create my soul's purpose
in my relationships.
I delight in discovering
more about the higher purpose
of my relationships,
and in fulfilling our higher purpose
in being together.

Shamanism

Modern Shamanism is perhaps the most diverse of all the forms of Pagan practice and is less clearly defined as a tradition than other Pagan paths. Shamanic practices are an underlying aspect of all expressions of Pagan religion and there are those who would describe themselves as Wiccan, Druidic or Women's Mystery Shamans. Bearing this in mind, there are, however, a growing number of men and women who see themselves on a specifically Shamanic path.

Those who see themselves as Shamans place great emphasis upon individual experience. Shamans may sometimes work together in groups, but the ethos of this way of working is more of a solitary path. Shamanic practice is characterized by seeking vision in solitude and is deeply rooted in the mysteries of Nature.

Shamanism is an ecstatic religion with an essential belief in the reality of the spirit world. The Shaman, through training or calling, is one who is able to enter that world and work with the unseen powers. The Shaman acts as an intermediary between the spirit world and the everyday lives of men and women. He or she may also guide others to experience the spirit world for themselves and so deepen their spiritual lives. Through contact with the spirits, the Shaman can work acts of healing, divination and magic - revealing by way of vision, poetry and myth the deeper reaches of the human spirit.

'Shamans are healers, seers, and visionaries. .. they are in communication with the world of gods and spirits. Their bodies can be left behind while they fly to unearthly realms. They are poets and singers. They dance and create works of art. .. they are familiar with cosmic as well as physical geography; the ways of plants, animals, and the elements are known to them. They are psychologists, entertainers, and food finders. Above all, however, shamans are technicians of the sacred and masters of ecstasy.'

Joan Halifax, Shamanic Voices , E P Dutton, NY, 1979.

The Shamanic practice of today ranges from those trained in the paths of traditional societies such as the Native American tribes, to those reconstructing Shamanic practice from historical accounts and from their own experience. Shamanism in its pure form, as practised in tribal society as a part of tribal religion, is less accessible than other Pagan paths, but modern reconstructions are growing in popularity.

Site Content © Copyright The Pagan Federation 2003/2004

Rules Of Life

Rule One - You will receive a body. Whether you love it or hate it, it's yours for life, so accept it. What counts is what's inside.

Rule Two - You will be presented with lessons. Life is a constant learning experience, which every day provides opportunities for you to learn more. These lessons specific to you, and learning them 'is the key to discovering and fulfilling the meaning and relevance of your own life'.

Rule Three - There are no mistakes, only lessons. Your development towards wisdom is a process of experimentation, trial and error, so it's inevitable things will not always go to plan or turn out how you'd want. Compassion is the remedy for harsh judgement - of ourselves and others. Forgiveness is not only divine - it's also 'the act of erasing an emotional debt'. Behaving ethically, with integrity, and with humour - especially the ability to laugh at yourself and your own mishaps - are central to the perspective that 'mistakes' are simply lessons we must learn.

Rule Four - The lesson is repeated until learned. Lessons repeat until learned. What manifest as problems and challenges, irritations and frustrations are more lessons - they will repeat until you see them as such and learn from them. Your own awareness and your ability to change are requisites of executing this rule. Also fundamental is the acceptance that you are not a victim of fate or circumstance - 'causality' must be acknowledged; that is to say: things happen to you because of how you are and what you do. To blame anyone or anything else for your misfortunes is an escape and a denial; you yourself are responsible for you, and what happens to you. Patience is required - change doesn't happen overnight, so give change time to happen.

Rule Five - Learning does not end. While you are alive there are always lessons to be learned. Surrender to the 'rhythm of life', don't struggle against it. Commit to the process of constant learning and change - be humble enough to always acknowledge your own weaknesses, and be flexible enough to adapt from what you may be accustomed to, because rigidity will deny you the freedom of new possibilities.

Rule Six - "There" is no better than "here". The other side of the hill may be greener than your own, but being there is not the key to endless happiness. Be grateful for and enjoy what you have, and where you are on your journey. Appreciate the abundance of what's good in your life, rather than measure and amass things that do not actually lead to happiness. Living in the present helps you attain peace.

Rule Seven - Others are only mirrors of you. You love or hate something about another person according to what love or hate about yourself. Be tolerant; accept others as they are, and strive for clarity of self-awareness; strive to truly understand and have an objective perception of your own self, your thoughts and feelings. Negative experiences are opportunities to heal the wounds that you carry. Support others, and by doing so you support yourself. Where you are unable to support others it is a sign that you are not adequately attending to your own needs.

Rule Eight - What you make of your life is up to you. You have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you. Take responsibility for yourself. Learn to let go when you cannot change things. Don't get angry about things - bitter memories clutter your mind. Courage resides in all of us - use it when you need to do what's right for you. We all possess a strong natural power and adventurous spirit, which you should draw on to embrace what lies ahead.

Rule Nine - Your answers lie inside of you. Trust your instincts and your innermost feelings, whether you hear them as a little voice or a flash of inspiration. Listen to feelings as well as sounds. Look, listen, and trust. Draw on your natural inspiration.

Rule Ten - You will forget all this at birth. We are all born with all of these capabilities - our early experiences lead us into a physical world, away from our spiritual selves, so that we become doubtful, cynical and lacking belief and confidence. The ten Rules are not commandments, they are universal truths that apply to us all. When you lose your way, call upon them. Have faith in the strength of your spirit. Aspire to be wise - wisdom the ultimate path of your life, and it knows no limits other than those you impose on yourself.

Aromaterapia -Three Easy Recipes to Overcome Insomnia

By Françoise Rapp
Stress, anxiety or nervous tension can lead us to a night of sleepless torture, leaving us without an ounce of energy the next day. But you can overcome the most persistent insomnia simply by preparing the following aromatic recipes. Whatever the cause of your restless suffering, I offer these three delightful blends to bring you sweet dreams and make your nights worthwhile and peaceful!

Insomnia Blend #1: Stress-related

Ingredients:

a.. 9 drops Lavender
b.. -3 drops Roman Chamomile

Add these oils to a 10-ml bottle, and fill with vegetable oil. Massage the blend onto your temples, neck and shoulders. Breathe the blend in deeply before going to bed. Pour up to 20 drops into a warm bath.

Insomnia Blend #2: Anxiety-related

Ingredients:

a.. -4 drops Orange
b.. -8 drops Lavender

Add these oils to a 10-ml bottle, and fill with vegetable oil. Massage into your abdomen (the second chakra), your temples and neck. Breathe the blend in deeply before going to bed. Pour up to 20 drops into a warm bath.

Insomnia Blend #3: Nervous tension-related

Ingredients:

a.. -4 drops Rose
b.. -2 drops Roman Chamomile

Add these oils to a 10-ml bottle, and fill with vegetable oil. Massage your solar plexus (the third chakra), your temples and neck. Breathe the blend in deeply before going to bed. Pour up to 20 drops into a warm bath.

In good health,
Francoise Rapp

Quotation: MEDITATION

"... Cease to listen and you will hear truth,
Be silent and your heart will sing,
Be still and you will move forward on the Tide of the Spirit..."
-- Taoist Meditation

Gentian

is the remedy for the relatively mild downheartedness and despondency that follows when something has gone wrong. As soon as things start to go right again this kind of despondency tends to lift by itself, but the remedy can be used to lift it the sooner so that the person is better able to make things go right, instead of just hoping they will do so.
Gentian is often confused with Gorse, but in fact they can be told apart quite easily. People in a Gorse state have decided to give up and so feel completely without hope. They have pitched their tents and refuse to be encouraged, and even if they are persuaded to try to find a way out they will do so grudgingly, assuring everyone that there is no use even trying. People in a Gentian state are discouraged: but they will soon pick up again when things start to go right.

Dr Bach's description
Those who are easily discouraged. They may be progressing well in illness, or in the affairs of their daily life, but any small delay or hindrance to progress causes doubt and soon disheartens them. - taken from The Twelve Healers and Other Remedies.

State of being
For those who are faltering or are despondent. Look on the dark side and are pessimistic. In convalescence when they think they have come to a standstill; really doing well but tend to be discouraged and doubt that they are making progress. This is for those who feel as if the difficulties before them are too big to be overcome and temporarily lose heart. In this state they only want a little encouragement which this remedy will give them and they will do well.
Edward Bach

Affirmation
The little Gentian of our hilly pastures will help you to keep your firmness of purpose, and a happier and more hopeful outlook even when the sky is over-cast. It will bring you encouragement at all times, and the understanding that there is no failure when you are doing your utmost, whatever the apparent result.
Collected Writings p107

Habitat notes
General
Gentian grows on predominantly calcareous (lime) soils on dry, hilly pastures where grass is short, in many parts of Europe. It will not tolerate farm chemicals and like so many plants, it is, consequently, in retreat.
Britain
G. amarella is one of only a few species of Gentian that occur in Britain. G. amarella (felwort) is a small annual species growing on chalky or calcareous hills.

Suggestions for healing affirmations

Hello, I found these in a folder which has been out of sight for
years. They are not taken from the Affirmation course link posted a
few days ago. I hope they'll be helpful.

I am new and renewed.
I release all past problems
I have all new ways of thinking
I release all people and experiences that offend me
Infinite strength is always available to me
I am enthusiastic about life
I am equal to any task given to me
My energy is balanced
I move with ease
I am confident of myself
Moving forward in life is fun and easy
I trust my life to be perfect for me
I am relaxed
I face life easily
All is well in all I do
I feel safe in everything I do
I am moving forth with confidence
I have the courage to experience life
New things are exciting to me
I love my abdomen because it helps me nourish my life
I love and respect my body
I bless my food and it blesses me
My body is beautiful
I am attractive
My body is light and free
My body uses only nutrients that make me healthy
I feel good when I make decisions
I understand new ideas
I start new projects and finish them easily
Right action is taking place in my life
I feel easy about my life
My life is focused on my goals
I have peace of mind
I know I can have good experiences
I let go of the past
I am wothy of good things
I love life and life is good to me
People love me for who I am
My life is positive and good
I approach life in new and different ways
I have confidence in myself
I am relaxed and in control
I am at peace
I am centered and at peace in all things
I face the world squarely
I feel firmly planted in my environment
I release all stress to perfect harmony
I simplify my life
I am my own best friend
I am relaxed and calm
I make my own choices
I love my lungs because they give me the breath of life
My chest expands freely
I love life
I am worthy of the pleasures offered to me
I am flexible in my attitudes
I give and take when interacting with people
My life is filled with fun and goodness
I am living in the present
I am calm
I let go
I release all past emotional stress
I am in control of my life
I support myself in my life's experiences
I am free of the demands of others
My needs in life are taken care of
I look forward to the future with joy
New experiences are easy for me
Change is easy for me
I am flexible to new ideas
I let this day go and bless its experiences
Tomorrow will bring a fresh start for me
I relax and rest in spirit
I trust my life to take care of me
I have released this day
I slip into perfect peace
I release my stress
I feel good about what I do
I enjoy my life
I flow with my life's experiences
I love what I do
I love myself
I am peaceful
I easily release all tension with love
I feel joy in my life
I love my life
I change my life by changing my thinking
I am a sage as i move through life
I forgive everyone and everything
I bend with ease when choices are not mine
I am flexible in my thinking
I allow others to live there lives as they choose
I do not expect anything from anyone
I feel happy
I love those close to me
I enjoy my life
I am at peace and secure
I approve of myself
Expressing emotions frees my life
I am flexible in all that i do
I am relaxed and at peace
I see all sides of any issue
My flexible life approach opens doors for me
I trust my decision to be true to myself
I balance my life with work and play
I feel centered in my life
I look forward to my life's goals
My home and family life are balance
I am strong and happy
My body stays strong at all times
I am easily in control
My muscles relax when I breathe
I am calm as I speak
I am secure and safe
I feel good about my future
I move forward with honesty
I am prosperous and secure
Life treats me well
I am true to my own values
I relax and enjoy life
I experience fully all that I do
I have the courage to step out in life
I understand where I am going
Life flows through me with ease
I think things through easily and completely
I love life to the fullest
My emotions are functioning in perfect harmony
I am able to handle my success
My creativity gives me joy
I express myself easily
I speak up for what I think
I am excited about what I am doing
I see new things at every turn
I am awake to new ways of thinking
Joy is expressed through me every day
I have a happy, active life
I am alert, alive and fully rested
I release all tensionin life
Life is a joy for me
I let all people in my life carry their own burdens
I arise to the challenge of unlimited opportunities
I am relaxed and enjoy life
I love to be in control of my life
I love being who I am
I love and approve of myself
I am in control of my life

Affirmations can be used with reiki. There are several processes.
What is important to remember is that an affirmation, and Reiki need
to be backed up with a commitment-- -This may involve lifestyle
changes. The affirmation and intention may start our motivation and
the flow of opportunities, but we need to be ready. We need
acceptance and continued action. A saw tooth progression is common.
Long term effort gets results. (Please do not intend or affirm what
you are not ready to accept in your life.)

Namaste

Amigos

Aromaterapia - Feeling Exhausted / Fatigue

Help stimulate your mind and increase your energy levels throughout the day.You can make your own inhaling oil from Juniper, Peppermint, and Geranium.This formula can be mixed and placed on the end of an inhalant tube. It willstimulate the mind and body by increasing blood flow and promotingself-awareness.

Blend Juniper and Lavender or Rosemary and Geranium ( 6 drops of each )to 2 ounces of carrier oil. Massage solar plexus in a counterclockwisecircular motion with right hand (stimulating hand).

Suffering Zen with depression

How a woman's struggle with depression taught her about faith, prayer, and when to stop meditating
Susan Moon


I want to tell you about coming apart, wanting to die, and returning at last to myself, and about how my Buddhist practice both helped and hindered me in this zigzag journey, in ways I couldn't have predicted.

I didn't call it depression for most of the five years I was in and out of it. I thought depression was for lethargic people who stayed in bed all day. But my pain was as sharp as an ice pick. Restless in the extreme, I paced and paced, looking for a way out.
While my misery seemed to be connected to the drawn-out and difficult end of a relationship with a lover, I came to realize that it was about my whole life. The invisible causes were old griefs and fears, about being left alone, and about not being left alone. I had been through painful separations before, but this one deconstructed me as none other had. After a wrenching divorce, I had other relationships, but I always erred on the side of independence, raising my children as a single mother, managing my life, my household, my recycling, on my own. But when it seemed, finally, that I would have somebody else to remind me to change the oil in my car, and then when it seemed, even more finally, that I wouldn't, the dam burst, and my pent-up longing to be taken care of came crashing through.

When I sat down on my meditation cushion, the quiet just provided a chance for my obsessional thoughts to take over the stage.

I had been a Zen Buddhist practitioner for over 20 years. Buddhist teachings are about suffering and the end of suffering, and Zen Buddhism, in particular, emphasizes sitting still in the midst of your suffering and just letting go. I assumed that my meditation practice would steady me. What could be more comforting than 40 minutes in the peaceful, familiar zendo, with the slant of sun across the cedar floorboards, and the sweet smell of tatami matting? But it didn't help. This is what I want to say: At times it made things worse. The demons in my mind took advantage of the opportunity. They weren't real demons, but they didn't care whether they were real or not; they tormented me anyway.
My Buddhist teachers urged me to keep on sitting zazen. "Don't turn away from your suffering," they said again and again. "When you sit, painful thoughts and feelings will arise. Just notice them, without clinging to them. The painful thoughts and feelings will pass away again, and you'll realize that they are empty."
But when I sat down on a zafu [meditation cushion], the quiet just provided a chance for my obsessional thoughts to take over the stage. "I've ruined my life." "How can I get him back?" The painful thoughts arose all right, but they didn't pass away. Or if they did, it was only to make room for even more painful thoughts. "I don't know how to give or receive love." "I'll die alone." And, adding insult to injury: "I'm the worst Zen student that ever was."
Occasionally a Zen teacher will concede that if a person is in the middle of a mental breakdown, perhaps she should stop sitting until she gets her strength back. This is like a track coach telling you that you shouldn't run while you have a broken leg. The assumption is that if there weren't something wrong with you, if you weren't so weak, you'd be on the zafu.
And when I told my teachers I was disappointed that zazen didn't make me feel better, they scolded me. "You don't sit zazen to get something. You sit zazen in order to sit zazen. If you want zazen to make you happy, it won't work." But I wasn't even asking to be happy; I was asking to be less miserable. I was hoping for some peace of mind. And didn't Buddha invent Buddhism in the first place to alleviate suffering? Did all those other people in the zendo really get up out of bed at 5 a.m. for no particular reason?
I kept going back, hoping that if I meditated hard enough I'd have some sort of "breakthrough." In the dimly remembered time of normalcy, sitting in the zendo, I too had had the experience of watching my worries turn to dry powder and blow away. So now I signed up to sit Rohatsu-sesshin, the weeklong meditation retreat in early December that commemorates Buddha's enlightenment. He sat down under the bodhi tree and vowed not to get up until he saw the truth. It took him a week. I had sat many sesshins before, but maybe this would be my week.
The first day was bad. I cried quietly, not wanting to disturb the others. The second day was worse. Tears and snot dripped off my chin onto my breast. I hated myself. Nobody else will ever love me!
"Bring your attention back to your breathing," my teachers had advised me. But this was like telling a person on the rack, whose arms are being pulled out of her shoulder sockets, to count her exhalations.
Sometimes it was like being in heavy surf. A wave of pain would grow, crest, and break with a crash, grinding my bones against the rocky bottom, and then I'd get my head above the water just in time to notice another, bigger wave coming.
But I wasn't on the rack. I wasn't in the surf. I was in the zendo. Around me sat my dharma brothers and sisters, hands in their proper position. As for my hand position, I dug the nails of my left hand deep into the palm of my right hand, feeling relief at the physical pain, and momentary proof of my existence.

Sometimes being on the meditation cushion was like being in heavy surf. A wave of pain would grow, crest, and break with a crash, grinding my bones against the rocky bottom.

On the morning of the fifth day--after fleeing the zendo several times in agony--I called the Zen Center and said I wasn't feeling well--an understatement if there ever was one--and wouldn't be sitting the rest of the sesshin.
I thought I had failed in my practice--20 years of it!--and was bitterly disappointed in myself. Only now do I see what a growth it was: not to be ruled by dogma, to be compassionate with myself, to take my spiritual practice into my own hands. I didn't sit zazen for some months, and now I know that stopping was zazen. Unfortunately, it wasn't until after the depression subsided that I saw that choosing not to sit took as much faith in myself as choosing to sit.
Buddhism teaches that we have "no fixed self." There is nothing permanent about me. During my depression, I wasn't my "self," as we say. I didn't seem to have a self at all, which in a way cruelly mimicked this central point in Buddhist teaching. There was nobody home, and it was terrifying. I felt angry at Buddhism, as if to say: You told me there's no fixed self, and I believed you, and look where it got me!
It helped me to give a name--other than "crazy"--to how I felt, but it took me awhile. I finally called myself "depressed" when I read an article by the writer Andrew Solomon about his own depression in The New Yorker (January 12, 1998), and he described symptoms similar to mine. It turned out I wasn't the only one who had ever felt "too frightened to chew," as Solomon put it. And I knew just what he meant when he wrote, "Depression is a disease of self-obsession." I was sick. I was "clinically depressed."
It was reading this article that made me decide to try medication. Solomon says, "To take medications as part of the battle is to battle fiercely, and to refuse them is as ludicrous as entering a modern war on horseback."
I had a lot of resistance to taking medication. The voice of orthodox Zen whispered in my mind that the monks of old didn't have Zoloft, the drug that eventually helped me. But some of those monks probably obsessed their lives away in misery; others may have left the monastery because they couldn't concentrate. Buddhist history doesn't tell us about the ones who tried and failed, the ones with attention deficit disorder or clinical depression.
And so, by trial and error, I learned to construct my own spiritual practice, according to my needs and abilities. I was learning to trust myself.
Every morning, as soon as I got out of bed, I lit a candle on my little altar and offered a stick of incense. I made three full bows, then stood before the altar, my palms pressed together, and recited out loud my morning prayers, starting with a child's prayer a Catholic friend had taught me:

Angel of God, my guardian dear,
To whom God's love commits me here,
Ever this day be at my side
To watch and guard, to rule and guide.
It was comforting to ask somebody else, somebody who wasn't me, for help. Prayer was something I missed in Zen practice as I knew it, so I imported it from Christianity and other Buddhist traditions. I prayed to Tara, Tibetan goddess of compassion, to fly down from the sky, all green and shining, into my heart. I prayed to Prajna Paramita, the mother of all Buddhas, who "brings light so that all fear and distress may be forsaken, and disperses the gloom and darkness of delusion." These words (from the ancient Prajnaparamitta sutra) reminded me of the 23rd Psalm: "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me." I said this too.
Then I took refuge in Buddha, dharma and sangha, saying the words out loud, whether I felt anything or not. Taking refuge is an act of faith. I followed with my own translation: "I take refuge in my own true nature, I take refuge in things as they are, I take refuge in the community of which I am a part."

It was comforting to ask somebody else, somebody who wasn't me, for help. Prayer was something I missed in Zen practice as I knew it, so I imported it from Christianity and other Buddhist traditions.

That I had shaped this practice for myself gave me confidence. And the early morning incense smoke, though it was thin and drifting, provided a hint of continuity for my days. They seemed, after all, to be days in the same life. One person's life: mine.
Faith is an attitude emphasized more in Christianity than in Buddhism, but it's there in Buddhism too. Faith means faith in yourself, in the practice, in the ancestors, in the teaching. Faith means believing that everything is unfolding as it needs to unfold, and that your own life is part of that unfolding.
Once, when I called Zen teacher Reb Anderson in despair, he came to Berkeley to see me. We sat on a park bench in a children's playground, and he told me, "Try to remember that the universe is already taking care of you." In the following months, I repeated this mantra to myself over and over: "The universe is already taking care of me."
Now, almost two years out of the desolation, I still don't understand what happened, and I wish I did understand, because I don't ever want to "go there" again. But I do know some of the things that pulled me through, including nature, the love of friends and family, poetry, medication, therapy, my own form of prayer, and learning to trust myself. I am grateful many times a day for my mental health. Even on days when I'm the most lonesome, or the most afraid, there's somebody home inside myself.

The Twelve Conditions Of A Miracle - Todd Michael

This extraordinary new understanding of the Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes reveals within the original Greek twelve practical methods orliving a life that is purposeful and plentiful.
In meticulously re-translating the biblical Miracle of the
Loaves and Fishes, author and physician Todd Michael made an astonishing discovery:

Below the surface-deep within the subtleties of the original Greek-lies an obscured layer of
information. Here, the actual technique of the miracle is revealed in the form of twelve precise and attainable steps to extraordinary living.

Todd Michael,, has served as the medical director of
an emergency room and level-three trauma center. A popular national
speaker, Michael is the author of four books, including The Evolution
Angel. He lives in Colorado.

What are the twelve conditions of a miracle?

I. Emptiness. Calmly release whatever you are withholding from the world: Giving creates a vacuum for more to flow in.

II. Alignment. Shift to a mind-set of compassion and the greater good; move from concern over yourself to the concerns of others.

III. Asking. Clarify your true needs. If you don't clearly put your request into words, the universe won't even know to respond.

IV. Maximizing. Make full use of your existing tools, resources, and blessings. Whatever you focus on expands.

V. Giving. What flows away from you flows back magnified: Become a joyful giver.

VI. Grounding. Experience the present moment as much as possible. A solid grounding in the present establishes a firm base from which to act - and receive.

VII. Visualizing. Using all of your senses, see and feel yourself having the feelings and experiences that form the basis of your wish.

VIII. Gratitude. Bless your resources. Express your feelings of gratitude in words.

IX. Acting as If. Stop procrastinating. Take the leap of faith and act as though your new reality has already manifested.

X. Engaging the Cycle. When you receive, immediately look for a way to give something back. Work with the circular energy flow that characterizes our universe.

XI. Receiving. Eat and be filled. The art of adequate receiving is often overlooked.

XII. Recycling. Gather up the fragments: Reuse all of your physical resources.

You Deserve a Whole Lot of Joy

Joy is in release, so thankfully received,
Joy is in sorry, so sweetly mourned and grieved,
Joy is to be found, you find it through yearning,
Joy is in coming and going, waiting and watching, living and learning.
-Norris Chumley


From "The Joy of Weight Loss: A Spiritual Guide to Easy Fitness" by Norris Chumley:

Joy is a very glad, happy feeling. It's a radiant human emotion you get as a result of receiving pleasure, satisfaction, and comfort. Joy is a blissful experience that happens when everything in your life is fine and you are all right no matter what comes your way.

Joy is also a spiritual condition. Joy happens when you are feeling blessed. It comes when you feel the presence of your Creator, assuring you that you belong and that you're not alone. Joy is when you know you are valued and important to this great universe.
I'm sure you've experienced joy, at least a little. But you deserve a whole lot of joy, on a regular basis. Don't wait until you lose weight in order to find joy. Find and accept it now, and you will lose weight in the process. But first, be aware that you may be holding yourself back.

Each of us has a million different joys inside. It's simply a matter of tapping into them when you need them and creating new, positive habits of letting joy exist.

Starting now, make a constant effort to find joy in everything you do. When you work, see the positive and fruitful aspects of the job-such as the money you are paid, the help you are giving, the importance of your position. When you're taking care of personal business, find joy in getting it done as best you can. When it's time for a meal, take joy in only eating one portion. Feel the power and joy of having just enough. Enjoy the good feeling of eating healthy, fresh, nutritious food that's good for your body and mind. When you are active today, enjoy moving your body and freeing your muscles and joints. Breathe deeply the fresh air and let the rays of sunshine enter your entire being. Look at beautiful nature all around you: trees, flowers, grass, birds, and bugs-they're all gifts from God for us to enjoy.

Six Strategies to Calm Yourself Down

Here are some physical strategies Aron mentions if you find yourself overaroused and about to have a meltdown (like I did in Toys-R-Us). She offers psychological methods, too, but I've found it more helpful to start with these physical suggestions. (Then again, that's coming from a person who has difficulty meditating if she's not burning calories.) The commentary is mine. (I got sick of the brackets, so I thought I'd just fly with my own descriptions of each suggestion.)

1. Get out of the situation!

For example, leave your kids with your husband and walk out of Toys-R-Us before you throw Elmo and his whistling buddies across the store. Or if a conversation about global warming, consumerism, or the trash crisis in the US is overwhelming you, simply walk away from it. My great aunt, Gigi, mastered this point. She knew her triggers, and if a conversation or setting was anywhere near her trigger point, she simply put one foot in front of another, and went bye-bye.

2. Close your eyes to shut out some of the stimulation.

Ever since my mom came down with a neurological tick of the eyelid called blepharospasm, I've become aware of how important shutting our eyes is to the nervous system. Her only option to keep her eyes open was to have an operation that would do just that...but then she wouldn't be able to shut them, and that would be even more detrimental to her well-being and ability to function. My mom's disorder is very much like an extreme arousal of the nervous system, and she often has to retreat somewhere to close her eyes. Only then can she retain her balance and her proper focus.

The only time I recommend not using this technique is on the road (if you're driving). (My mom and I argue about that all the time.)

3. Take frequent breaks.

This can be challenging if you are at work, or at home with kids as creative and energetic as mine (I can't pee without someone getting whacked in my absence). But HSPs need breaks to let the nervous system regenerate.

I must have known I was a HSP back in college, because three out of my four years, I opted for a tiny single room (a nun's closet, quite literally), rather than going in on a killer room if I roomed with three other people.

"Nope," I said to my prospective roomies. "Can't do it. Need my alone time, or else none of you would want to be around me. Trust me."

I would go to the extent of pasting black cardboard on my window, so that no one could tell if I was there, and I'd get my hours of solitude that I needed (of course I was also depressed).

Be creative. Take your break. Any way you can. Even it involves black construction paper.

4. Go outdoors.

This is a true saver for me. I need to be outside for at least an hour every day to get my sanity fix. Granted, I'm extremely lucky to be able to do so as a stay-at-home mom. But I think I would somehow shove it into my schedule even if I had to commute into DC everyday. Or maybe I would quit my DC job, because the commute was making me into a monster.

Even if I'm not walking or running or biking or swimming, being outside calms me in a way that the right pharmaceuticals do. With an hour with nature, I go from being a very bossy, opinionated, angry, cynical, uptight person into a bossy, opinionated, cynical relaxed person. And that makes the difference between having friends and a husband to have dinner with and a world that tells me to go eat a frozen dinner by myself because they don't want to catch whatever grumpy bug I have.

5. Use water to take the stress away.

While watching Disney's "Pocahantas" the other day with Katherine, I realized I must be part Native American. The sheer joy that Indian woman of healthy proportions (thank you, Disney, for not releasing another animated anorexic princess) shows upon paddling down the river, singing about how she is one with the water, makes me realize how universal the mood effect of water is, and especially to a HSP.

On the rainy or snowy days that I can't walk the double jogger over to Spa Creek or Back Creek, I do something the global-warming guys say not to, and take a long shower, imagining that I am in the middle of a beautiful Hawaii rain forest. I've always needed to chill out on the side of a lake, pond, creek, or bay--even the dirty St. Joseph's river in South Bend, Indiana, or Caesar Creek State Park (the closest thing to nature) near Dayton, Ohio.

"Water helps in many ways," writes Aron. "When overaroused, keep drinking it--a big glass of it once an hour. Walk beside some water, look at it, listen to it. Get into some if you can, for a bath or a swim. Hot tubs and hot springs are popular for good reasons."

6. Take a walk and calm your breathing.

A method that combines both of those things is walking meditation, a form of mindfulness meditation that involves focusing on the details of your movement and breath at the same time. Sayadaw U. Silananda, the Buddhist monk and scholar, compares the practice of mindfulness meditation to boiling water in his article "The Benefits of Walking Meditation":


If one wants to boil water, one puts the water in a kettle, puts the kettle on a stove, and then turns the heat on. But if the heat is turned off, even for an instant, the water will not boil, even though the heat is turned on again later. If one continues to turn the heat on and off again, the water will never boil. In the same way, if there are gaps between the moments of mindfulness, one cannot gain momentum, and so one cannot attain concentration. That is why yogis at our retreats are instructed to practice mindfulness all the time that they are awake, from the moment they wake up in the morning until they fall asleep at night. Consequently, walking meditation is integral to the continuous development of mindfulness.